All summer long, my thoughts have been centered on our US team selection races. It is the first major step towards qualifying for the 2010 Olympic team. We have a very competitive field of athletes in the US and only three women and three men are able to compete on the World Cup team (which is the highest level of competition).

On October 5^th I flew out to Lake Placid, New York for the first two of four races to qualify for the World Cup team. I absolutely love Lake Placid in the fall and the track there is one of my favorites in the world. We had a season kickoff where a bunch of athletes from a variety of winter sports signed autographs on Main Street in Lake Placid. It was a lot of fun to get together with the other winter athletes before our schedules get crazy.  As for sliding, Janson built my sled this summer but because I am in a sport that we are only able to slide between October and April, I never had a chance to test it out and see if it would work. So flying to New York with new equipment that has never been tested...in the Olympic year...was a little crazy. But *drum roll*.......... I absolutely love my new sled!!! Janson named it Habu, after the SR-71 Blackbird. I feel so comfortable on it already. I won both competitions in Lake Placid!!! Wahooooooooo! Following the races our team flew to Park City, Utah for the final two races of our trials. We had the weekend off before training and Janson and I had quite the yard project to complete before the cold weather sets in. We had to build our fence for our backyard. It was a nice change of scenery from the stress that comes with competing.

I am so grateful for the support that I have! My family, friends and neighbors came out to yell, cheer, whistle and ring bells as I raced on my home track in Park City. I went on to win both races in Park City making it the first team selection races that I won all four competitions! Thanks everyone for your support! I couldn't have done it without you!

Being that this is my last year competing, I really want to give everything I have and do my absolute best. I feel like I am off to a good start and am really looking forward to competing on the World Cup circuit. I am stoked about my new sled as well. We are BFF. J (ha ha ha)

I am now in Whistler, Canada. We have been given two weeks to train on the Olympic track. This is the only time we are able to slide here before the Olympics and I still have so much to learn. When we competed here last year I flipped off of my sled the day before the competition and finished 13^th in the World Cup race... definitely not what I was hoping for. But on the positive side...after just a couple of days of training here I already feel much more confident with the track and ready to compete. (For some reason, I never felt ready last year). I love this track! The rhythm and speed would hook any adrenaline junky.

Our first competition is the 12^th of November in Park City, Utah. Wahooooooo! I'm comin' home! The way that we make the Olympic team is by earning points at World Cup events. After 7 World Cup races, the points are tallied and the top athletes make the Olympic team. The US can have a maximum of 3 women and 3 men to compete in the Games. I can't believe it is just around the corner! It is finally here. It is so exciting to know that I am closer to my Olympic dream than I have ever been. What an amazing feeling.